Demonstrating the Cost-
Effectiveness of Reading
Recovery: Because It Makes
a Difference

Demonstrating the Cost-Effectiveness of Reading Recovery: Because It Makes a Difference

S. Assad & M.A. Condon. (1996, Winter). Network News, 10-14.


Assad and Condon conducted a cost-effectiveness study of Reading Recovery in Fall River, Massachusetts. During a 2-year period, (1993-1994 and 1994-1995), the Fall River Reading Recovery program served 186 students at an annual per-pupil cost of $2,363. Added to this was the cost of additional interventions for several referred or retained children, for a total implementation cost of $483,271. Using the data collected on retention, special education, and Title I placement in years prior to Reading Recovery implementation, district administrators estimated that without Reading Recovery, 50% of the Reading Recovery students would have been referred to special education and 50% would have been referred for Title I services. Administrators also estimated that approximately 5.7% would have been retained. Using these figures, district administrators estimated a 5-year cost of $1,746,145 if Reading Recovery had not been implemented in the district, for a net savings of $1,262,874. This dollar amount, however, does not translate directly into a reduction of school department spending. It is an estimate of the resources that because of Reading Recovery will not be needed for teaching basic literacy skills, thus allowing funds to be shifted to meet other important literacy needs.

Full text of "Demonstrating the Cost-Effectiveness of Reading Recovery: Because It Makes a Difference" (PDF version).
 

This abstract was first printed in What Evidence Says About Reading Recovery (2002). Columbus, OH: Reading Recovery Council of North America.